#sleeplesssquidkid

[glamorous-revenge]

In the midst of all the talking, one figure walks up and gives the crab's claw a gentle nuzzle. ~ sleeplesssquidkid

As annoyed and busy as Tamatoa had been today, the instant Echo touched his claw, he seemed to melt.

“Mon perle!” he purred brightly as he leaned in and returned the nuzzle. “You’re back again!”

[spirits-and-scales]

@sleeplesssquidkid and @glamorous-revenge

((Here it is finished! Hey, Echo, when I told you this would be the first thing I’d do today, I might as well have said “the only thing” haha. It was really fun drawing you two though.

Bless this gorgeous faces <3))

[semidemi-minigod]

When's the last time you slept?

“...Well, what day is it?”It couldn’t have been more than a week, right? Days slipped by so quickly when you’d lived a few thousand years, even with the sun wrangled into submission, and Maui found it hard to really keep track even at his best times. And this was not one of his best times.

[glamorous-revenge]

Echo had heard through the grapevine what was happening, and wasted no time in getting to Lalotai. The portal opened outside the lair instead of inside, and spit her out. Purse at her side, she looked at the entrance with her arms crossed. If anyone could understand a monster, it was a fellow monster. "Tamatoa!" She called, trying to draw the crustacean out in the open where it was safer for her. ~ sleeplesssquidkid

The cave was quiet... But as Echo called out, two glowing pink eyes opened up from the darkest corner visible from the entrance...

...but they weren’t Tamatoa’s... At least... not the Tamatoa she knew...

He growled, his white fangs only barely visible from his thin mouth.

[glamorous-revenge]

Running into the lair so fast she had to skitter to a stop, Echo spun around and located the large decapod that was now her house mate. The run turned to a jog, and she stopped next to him, wrangling her breathlessness under control before clearing her throat to get his attention. "Tamatoa, could I ask you something?" She inquired, rocking on her heels and keeping her hands behind her back. ~ sleeplesssquidkid

“Of course, mon perle,” he smiled warmly. “What’s on your mind?”

[glamorous-revenge]

She fidgeted nervously, her voice barely above a murmur as she looked at anything but Tamatoa, her tentacles black and lightless. Echo swallowed timidly. "I...heard you needed a hug..." ~ sleeplesssquidkid

“Echo!”

The crab immediately darted out from beneath the sweater and wrapped his arms tightly around her leg. As he held onto her, a low whine spilled out of him... similar to his agitated chirping, but much more drawn out and labored...

Was he... crying?

“Echo...” he repeated as he buried his face against her.

[glamorous-revenge]

@sleeplesssquidkid​

A little Anon had cued him in on Echo’s stress lately, as well as a certain something he could do to cheer her up, and Tamatoa was happy to oblige. Since the smaller monster had been using his old bowtie as a bed lately, the crab had gotten his hands on another one... This one colored bright gold and decorated with sparkling rhinestones, making the whole accessory dazzle like a disco ball.

He crept up behind her as she did her homework, not exactly subtly since that would’ve been a lost cause, but as he leaned down closer to her, he pulled out the stalactite he had used during the last time he had crooned. He took a deep breath, and then in his warmest, smoothest tones, began to sing.

~♫ “Those fingers in my hair That sly come-hither stare That strips my conscience bare It's witchcraft And I've got no defense for it The heat is too intense for it What good would common sense for it do?” ♫~

His clawtip rested gently on one of her shoulders, and his cheek pressed gently against the other.

~♫ “'cause it's witchcraft, wicked witchcraft And although I know it's strictly taboo When you arouse the need in me My heart says "Yes, indeed" in me ‘Proceed with what you're leadin' me to’” ♫~

[glamorous-revenge]

Carefully approaching him, Echo gently placed a hand against her dear friend, eyes and tentacle shimmering once again now that she had rested. Her voice was soft, loving, as she watched the crustacean. "Tamatoa..? I'm back." She said quietly. ~ sleeplesssquidkid

His response was anything but quiet.

“And so am I!” The crab roughly scooped her up and pressed her against his cheek in a warm hug. “Echo, I’m back to my beautiful, awe-inspiring self again~” he sang as he practically twirled around the room.

But he stopped quite suddenly and held her out in front of him. “Are you alright though? You seemed pretty out of it last night after fighting that other monster and holding that portal open all day...”